BENIGN MULTICYSTIC PERITONEAL MESOTHELIOMA MIMICKING GYNECOLOGIC PATHOLOGY

Our plain-English summary of BENIGN MULTICYSTIC PERITONEAL MESOTHELIOMA MIMICKING GYNECOLOGIC PATHOLOGY, by I. Alvir, B. Bevanda, D. Danolić, et al (Acta Clinica Croatica, 2021).

The study

• Authors: I. Alvir, B. Bevanda, D. Danolić, I. Mamić, L. Kostić, A. Starčević-Božović, M. Puljiz
• Journal: Acta Clinica Croatica
• Published: 2021;60(2):323-325
• Type of article: Case report
• Cited by: 3 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma is a rare pathology that arises from the abdominal peritoneum. It has an affinity to develop on the surfaces of pelvic viscera. It predominantly occurs in women of reproductive age. The most used form of treatment is complete surgical removal. We report a case of a a 21-year-old female patient who presented with unclear diffuse abdominal pain. Transvaginal ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging of the abdomen and pelvis revealed multiple functional cysts in the projection of the right and left ovary and free fluid in the pouch of Douglas. Laparoscopy was performed and multicystic tumor with thin, smooth walls, filled with clear serous content was found in lesser pelvis spreading to the left paracolic region and under the spleen. The multicystic mass was removed. Histologic examination revealed cystic formations filled with mucous content and formed from connective tissue outside and single row epithelium-mesothelium inside. Definitive diagnosis was benign multicystic mesothelioma of the abdominal peritoneum. The patient was well at one year follow-up.

In plain English

This article is a case report from the Department of Gynecologic Oncology at Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Centre in Zagreb, Croatia. It describes one patient with benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma, a rare growth arising from the lining of the abdomen. The patient was a 21-year-old female with no serious earlier illnesses, admitted with unclear diffuse abdominal pain. Ultrasound and MRI showed multiple functional cysts in the area of both ovaries and free fluid in the pelvis. During laparoscopy, surgeons found a tumor made of many thin, smooth-walled cysts filled with clear fluid. It lay in the lesser pelvis and spread into the left paracolic region (beside the colon) and under the spleen, and it was removed. No malignant cells were found in the cyst fluid. Tissue examination and staining, which was positive for calretinin, CK5/6 and CA125, gave the diagnosis of benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma. At one-year follow-up the patient was well with no signs of recurrence. The authors concluded that gynecologists and pathologists should consider this condition when they find multilocular cystic masses in the pelvis. The article does not discuss asbestos or any other exposure.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: case report (one patient)
• Who was studied: one 21-year-old female patient with no serious prior illnesses, admitted with unclear diffuse abdominal pain to a gynecologic oncology department in Zagreb, Croatia
• Main results:
  • Transvaginal ultrasound and MRI showed multiple functional cysts in the projection of both ovaries; the right ovary measured 3.5x2.7 cm and the left ovary 3.3x2.6 cm
  • At laparoscopy, a multicystic tumor with thin, smooth walls filled with clear serous content was found in the lesser pelvis, spreading into the left paracolic region and under the spleen, and was removed
  • Cytologic analysis of the cyst fluid found no malignant cells
  • Immunohistochemical stains were positive for calretinin, CK5/6 and CA125, and the definitive diagnosis was benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma
  • The patient was well with no signs of recurrence at one-year follow-up
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of multilocular cystic masses in the pelvis, and that gynecologists and pathologists in particular should be aware of this possibility

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Peritoneal Mesothelioma, Pathology, Peritoneum, Ultrasound, Epithelium, Mesothelium, Multicystic Mesothelioma (MCM).

Related studies

• A recurrence of benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma treated through laparoscopic excision: a case report and review of the literature — T.D. Witek, J.W. Marchese, et al. (2014)
• Laparoscopic diagnosis and treatment of pelvic benign multicystic mesothelioma associated with high CA19.9 serum concentration — V. Pinto, A.C. Rossi, et al. (2010)
• Laparoscopic excision of a benign peritoneal cystic mesothelioma — A. Limone, J. Maier, et al. (2010)
• Benign multicystic peritoneal mesothelioma presenting as a ghost abdominal mass — H. Jerraya, W. Ghariani, et al. (2016)
• A Case of Abdominal Discomfort Caused by Benign Multicystic Peritoneal Mesothelioma — T.G. Cotter, J.S. Van Arnam, et al. (2016)
• Long-term results of laparoscopic cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC for the curative treatment of low-grade pseudomyxoma peritonei and multicystic mesothelioma — F. Mercier, G. Jeremie, et al. (2020)

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